Wide Whitewall tires for our M's

[gomopar89]

I found a source in Cali called Performance Plus Tire and Auto. They are located in Long Beach, CA and carry a new Chinese brand called Vitour Galaxy R1. They have 2 sizes for our cars: 215/75/15 with an 1 1/4" whitewall or 205/75/15 with an 1" whitewall. I bought the larger size for $89 each and they were delivered Friday. These are our only alternative if you don't have the money for Coker American Classics.

 

[MoparDan]

When I bought my '82 it still had the factory Goodyear Arriva tires on (the spare was a Michelin X though with the same thick white wall) my Gran Fury also had an Arriva spare. All I can say is they have to be cleaned constantly, or they look dirty, they do look good with those wire hug caps

 

[Aspen500]

No more work than white letter tires. A wipe with a clean cloth and some Bleche-Wite every couple days, good to go!

Nothing looks better on an 'M' than whitewalls, especially the sedans.

 

[gomopar89]

Nothing looks better on an 'M' than whitewalls, especially the sedans.

Exactly!

I will keep you updated, I am going to have them mounted and balanced this week.

 

[gporeilly]

Looking forward to the update on the install. The 215/75/15 with the 1.3 whitewall American Classic through Coker Tire or through distributor Summit Tire retails for $158 USD from both sources.... However freight/shipping is MUCH cheaper through Summit than directly from Coker.

 

[Aspen500]

I believe Cooper has wide whites in that size also. Not sure how wide but they appear to be at least an inch. Roughly $75-80 each.

 

[gporeilly]

I got a quote from "Diamond Back" as well....they can make a tire with any whitewall width in what ever brand tire you want.
A Michelin or Toyo 215/75/15 would cost approx $300 USD each PLUS any taxes PLUS freight....

 

[BudW]

No argument from me about whitewalls and M-bodies

This tire (picture from above, cropped and rotated) has good numbers on it (Treadwear 400, Traction A and Temperature A). The Load range and Speed rating is 100H which is also pretty good. The speed rating of “H” is good to 130 MPH.

I see no problems using that tire (other than I prefer to use parts made closer to home).

My only concern, is the larger tire (215/75R15’s).
I have installed that size on my ’86 5th Ave and on other cars – but I will say they will not fit on all of them (variations in vehicle manufacturing and other variables won’t let them fit all cars.
I don't recall ever seeing any F, M or J-body built using a 215/75R15.

Also the 215’s are a tad taller which will affect the speedometer gears as well as make the overall gear ratio a bit steeper (harder to take off)

205/75R15 tires are 27.1” tall (688.5 mm), tread is 8.07” wide (205 mm) and sidewall height is 6.07”.
215/75R15 tires are 27.7” tall (703.5 mm), tread is 8.46” wide (215 mm) and sidewall height is 6.35”.

BudW

 

[Dr Lebaron]

215/75R15’s seem big/tall to me on M's.
They are van tires.
I like 205/75/15 but willing to go/have gone before with 205/70/15.

When it comes to meat, I have 275/60/15 on the back of the Lebaron.

 

[gomopar89]

215/75R15’s seem big/tall to me on M's.

I don't recall ever seeing any F, M or J-body built using a 215/75R15.

I know, I know... I have 215s on my '89 5th and she drives just fine, plus I had to have the wider WW at 1 1/4". My '89 has Hankook Optimo h724 WW and these are the smoothest and quietest tires I have ever owned, but they have a very small WW.

 

[Yellowdart69]

The Cokers that I put on, are 215/75/15. They are not perfectly balanced, even after three tries. One tire was replaced, as being out of round, but the replacement is now the spare, so I don't know how it will be on the car. I wonder if the rims are the issue. I recently purchased a new (old) rim, from an auto wrecker. So I may try that in the future. I didn't get a price from Diamond Back, for the Cordoba tires. I did speak to them, a couple of years ago, concerning the whitewalls, for my 69 Dart. It has 7/8" white walls, and I have a thing about originality. Diamond Back, says he sands off all the markings, on the face of the tire, then vulcanizes on the whitewall. I wondered how this would look, and how it would hold up . I am still driving the Dart, on old tires, but keep off highways.

 

[Yellowdart69]

When I bought my '82 it still had the factory Goodyear Arriva tires on (the spare was a Michelin X though with the same thick white wall) my Gran Fury also had an Arriva spare. All I can say is they have to be cleaned constantly, or they look dirty, they do look good with those wire hug caps

 

[Yellowdart69]

My 82 Cordoba came with Michelins, as they came with the Roadability package that I ordered. I believe the standard tire on Cordobas were Goodyears, mounted on the narrower rim.

 

[volare 77]

Hopefully they last longer then the China made tires I had on my daily driver. They were cracking in the tread area in a little over a year.

 

[BudW]

215/75R15’s can fit a majority of M-bodies – but not all, depending on vehicle production/manufacturing tolerances (or however one wants to phrase that). I have seen a couple of cars that tires rub or come real close to rubbing. Several others they fit just fine.
The only problems is speedometer is off, and more importantly, the odometer is off which can be a sticky point on not having accurate mileage as far as government is concerned.


The white wall install process is legit and works in most cases – with a few exceptions. When a person gets a flat (nail, screw, etc.) and tire is driven on in a low (or no) air pressure condition – that can damage the white wall glue seam – making the white wall appear to be falling off, somewhat.
If you get a (fixable) flat, just get it fixed and don’t drive on a mostly flat tire.

. . . then vulcanizes on the whitewall. I wondered how this would look, and how it would hold up.

I recommend getting one tire made and see how it looks. If you like it, get more. If you don’t, put tire in trunk as a spare.
BudW

 

[Mr C]

I slapped a set of 215/70/ R15 Vogues on my 89 5th Ave. I love the yellow stripe with the wide white...and the speedo reads correctly. Win-win.

 

[Aspen500]

With the color of you particular car, those tires are a perfect fit! Not sure how they would look on, say, a blue car for example.
Off subject, sort of......I still remember when we went to the dealership to pick up the new car when I was 4 years old. A '68 Dodge Coronet that my dad still owns to this day (but it is little more than a parts car now,,,,,,,,,,,MAJOR rust). Anyways, it had twin stripe blue wall tires and being the car is B7 Blue, they were perfect on it. Unfortunately, the original bias plies only lasted about 15,000 miles and blue stripes were unobtainium by then.

 

[Master M]

I slapped a set of 215/70/ R15 Vogues on my 89 5th Ave. I live the yellow stripe with the wide white...and the speedo reads correctly. Win-win.

View attachment 28032

Those beautiful gold stripe tires look good on any color car !!

 

[Master M]

I know, I know... I have 215s on my '89 5th and she drives just fine, plus I had to have the wider WW at 1 1/4". My '89 has Hankook Optimo h724 WW and these are the smoothest and quietest tires I have ever owned, but they have a very small WW.

I also have the Hankook Optimo H724 tires on my 1988 M and I agree with the smooth and quiet ride. I also like the 44 psi rating for less rolling resistance. Whitewall width is 5/8".

 

[gporeilly]

Question ??
My 1988 5th Ave owner's manual {pocket/glove box manual} lists allowable 15" tire size as
205/75/15 {Standard} OR 215/70/15 {Fleet Pkg. Only}
Does "Fleet" only apply to 5th's made with the heavy duty leafs, sway bay, etc, produced for the cop cars and taxi"s ?? Presumably the heavier components gives that little extra clearance ??
My vehicle is the regular passenger model and concerned with clearances if I use the 215/70 or the 215/75. As I am contemplating having them custom made by Diamond Back to get the proper wide whitewall, I want to be confident with my purchase especially in light of the cost. I know I can order the standard 205/75 and be assured they will fit properly but several garages have suggested the 215/70 if I am going to replace.
Some members have been very helpful in providing the exact measurement differences but I still would like a little further input from members that have actually used the varies tires on the standard model.
Don't mean to beat a dead cat with this topic but would appreciate any comments.